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‘Idol’ Spurs Optimism at Fox Once Again

Among the changes on American Idol this year is an expanded panel of judges, with Kara DioGuardi, second from left, joining, from left, Randy Jackson, Paula Abdul and Simon Cowell.Credit
Michael Becker/Fox

At the end of calendar year 2008 the Fox network finds itself, as usual, trailing all its competitors in ratings. In other words, it once again has them exactly where it wants them.

Fox executives are accustomed to late-innings lightning. But this year they are even more confident, thanks to the return of the network’s thousand-pound ratings gorilla, “American Idol,” along with what looks like a more potent supporting lineup.

The once formidable action drama “24” will be back after a year off the air (because of the Hollywood writers’ strike), and a new drama called “Lie to Me” will arrive accompanied by whispers that it has the potential to be a breakout hit.

Fox has shaken up its lineup, moving its biggest drama, “House,” to Mondays at 8 p.m. from Tuesdays; it will be followed on Mondays by “24.” The network is also sliding its solid procedural drama “Bones” to Thursdays at 8 p.m. from Wednesdays, and placing its successful new science fiction drama, “Fringe,” on Tuesdays at 9 p.m., with “Lie to Me” on Wednesdays at 9 p.m.. That means both new series will stand to inherit some of the “American Idol” throngs.

Later in the winter Fox will bring on a new drama, “Dollhouse,” from Joss Whedon, the creator of “Buffy the Vampire Slayer,” as well as a new animated show from the “Arrested Development” creator Mitchell Hurwitz and a comedy-variety series starring Ozzy Osbourne and his family.

“We sort of see the time up to December as the introduction, and the main event happens in January,” said Peter Liguori, the chairman of Fox Entertainment.

The competitive field appears to be even more vulnerable to Fox’s annual winter offensive — two-thirds of it, anyway. Fox will mainly have to deal with a resurgent CBS, which has defied the overall trend in television by expanding its audience over the last year.

The three other major networks are down 9 percent each in total viewers. CBS as of last week was up 1 percent, and it has put together a solid schedule with no weak nights. Its shows, like the seemingly impregnable “NCIS” on Tuesdays, tend to hold off the “Idol” hordes better than what the other networks offer.

“Much like a pack of lions, ‘Idol’ preys on the weak,” said one senior executive at a competing network, who requested anonymity because he was not supposed to comment publicly on the performance of Fox or other networks.

Photo

Fox executives have high hopes for Lie to Me, with Tim Roth.Credit
Mike Yarish/Fox

Still, even CBS executives concede that they will have a serious fight on their hands trying to hold off Fox.

NBC and ABC may be easy pickings. Both those networks will go into January missing hours of high-rated programs: NFL football disappears from Sunday nights on NBC, and ABC has to wait until March before “Dancing With the Stars” returns to reclaim the three and a half hours it filled ably in the fall.

In the meantime Fox will have many “Idol” hours on its hands, starting on Jan. 13, with four hours that week. The numbers for “Idol” dropped about 9 percent last season, but Mr. Liguori said network executives and the show’s producers had met in long sessions to “tweak the format.”

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The result is one fewer week of audition shows, more shows in the Hollywood elimination round, an opportunity for the judges to add some competitors to the finalists and, most significant, a fourth judge: Kara DioGuardi, a songwriter and producer, will join Simon Cowell, Paula Abdul and Randy Jackson.

The idea was to stir up the mix on the panel, Mr. Liguori said, with Ms. DioGuardi being able to “go toe to toe with Simon.” Mr. Cowell and his pitiless commentary remain the focal point of the show. Fox gave its competitors the usual vapors this fall by again considering a move of “Idol” from Tuesdays and Wednesdays to Wednesdays and Thursdays.

“It’s wildly tempting; we do that every year,” Mr. Liguori said. Thursday, which is loaded with important shows on the other networks, is such an important night for advertisers — movie companies especially — that Fox has to consider how to build the night eventually, he said.

For now the move of “Bones” will suffice. “The goal this year was to create long-term programming assets,” Mr. Liguori said, pointing to the decision to give “Fringe” and “Lie to Me” the favored 9 p.m. slots on the usual “Idol” nights.

“Lie to Me” is about a police consultant, played by Tim Roth, who has developed scientific techniques to detect lies by reading people’s facial expressions. The pilot has won strong word of mouth. Referring to various recent scandals, Mr. Liguori said the show teams well with “Idol” because “it’s aspirational: with the government and the Madoff thing, the audience wants to see the truth.”

Fox hopes for a return to strength for “24,” which suffered a serious ratings decline in its last full season, two years ago. Fox reintroduced it with a two-hour movie last month that received both good reviews and good ratings.

Fox executives expect to claim the title as top-rated network again this season, but Mr. Liguori said that was only one goal.

“We’re playing for the long term,” he said. “We believe in broadcast television and scripted television.” That means, he explained, trying to find more shows like “House,” which can live on in syndication and DVD sales “and be an asset 8, 9, 10 years down the road.”

A version of this article appears in print on , on Page C1 of the New York edition with the headline: ‘Idol’ Spurs Optimism At Fox Once Again. Order Reprints|Today's Paper|Subscribe